Art Of Anarchy, the band that consist of well-known musicians, returned with their second studio album. This time Grande Rock had a chat with guitarist extraordinaire Ron “Bumblefoot” Thal somewhere between studio work, press, rehearsals, tour preparation & album release work, about the new album, the new singer and music in general. Read for more below…
Hi Ron, I’m glad to have you on Grande Rock again. “The Madness” is an incredible album on the whole… kudos!
R: Thank you very much, good to chat with you again! I’m happy you like the album, thanks!!
First of all, I’d like to ask how the band experienced the whole thing with Weiland’s loss. Did it cross your mind to call it a day at some point?
R: The way Weiland distanced himself from Art Of Anarchy was very disappointing, and unexpected. After the first album was released in June 2015, we started thinking about who our next singer could be...
How did you come up with Scott Stapp (Creed) as your new vocalist and in which way did he influence the band’s music style?
R: We had a short list of singers we thought would be good with the band, Scott Stapp was first on the list. We reached out, and in August two months after the album was released we were jamming with Scott Stapp. Scott always brings fantastic melodies, personal honest lyrics, it’s easy to relate to, and his voice is very recognizable. Scott is a true “team player” and a great guy to be in a band with; all the band members are, we work together as partners and all contribute fully, the way a band should, it’s great.
Listening to the album various times, I couldn’t help but think that Scott seems to have been with the band since the beginning. The music bond among you is so natural and normal on the whole. I do think that Scott “renews” the band’s sound in a way. What do you think?
R: Absolutely. We built something new, writing new songs, from scratch, building from the ground up. We all worked together, and the bond formed naturally, and over the past year-and-a-half it’s gotten stronger. I think that by us simply being ourselves, and doing this together, the music developed its own personality, a combination of all our personalities...
Which are the main differences and similarities between your debut and the new album?
R: To me the main difference, besides the obvious one of a new singer, is that the first album began as something personal for Jon & Vince Votta, they wrote the foundation of the songs on that album, and it evolved into a band. With the new album, everything began as a band from its beginning. The similarity is that Jon and Vince still express themselves the same way they did before on both albums, we all continued to be who we are.
What does the album title “The Madness” declare?
R: It’s a statement on Scott’s triumph over difficult personal challenges he had before joining the band. He speaks a lot about it in the lyrics throughout the album, and we all felt it was deserving of the album title. Not everybody survives what he went through – he did more than survive, he came out of it even stronger.
Do give us a hint about each track…
R: OK, here’s the first thoughts that come to mind...
“Echo of a Scream”: Modern, hi-energy, good guitar solos...
“1000 Degrees”: Foot-stomping anthem groove…
“No Surrender”: Dynamic from subdued verse to big chorus, dual harmony guitar melody solo.
“The Madness”: Our first single, also the first song we wrote together…
“Won’t Let You Down”: Melodic chorus, one of my favorites...
“Changed Man”: A real “rock ballad”...
“A Light in Me”: Another favorite...
“Somber”: A Somber reflective song, one of my favorite guitar solos...
“Dancing With the Devil”: Jon Votta does a cool solo at the end...
“Afterburn”: Lots of “ear candy” in the production, with old-school metal riffs, good guitar solos...
Did you take care of the album’s production again and where did the recordings take place? By the way, the production is superb in every part.
R: Thank you! Yes, I did the recording, mixing and mastering, we did it all at my studio...
You’re about to start a US tour in the next days. Do you intend to add more live shows in the US along the way? What about Europe?
R: We want to play everywhere we can, and hope to have this opportunity.
I do not know if you agree with the term “super-group” for AOA, but can you tell that AOA are here to stay no matter what? Did you talk it over with the other guys at some point?
R: No one knows what the future will be. The old saying is: “We make plans, and God laughs”. I’ve learned to take life one step at a time. Do we plan on breaking up tomorrow? Haha, no…
Which are your expectations from “The Madness” and what do you want to achieve with AOA in the years to come?
R: It’s simple, I want people to enjoy the music – I want them to feel energized by it, the way all get energized by music we love.
What about your personal plans for the future? Do you plan to release any solo album or not for the moment?
R: The focus is on Art Of Anarchy, but I always get the itch to do more Bumblefoot albums...
Time for our “weird questions”!!! How did you come up with the name Art OF Anarchy initially?
R: We all had ideas for names, Jon and Vince thought of Art Of Anarchy – “Art” because music is art, and “Anarchy” because everyone involved had un-governed freedom to write and perform what they wanted in the songs.
Has the internet changed the ways music should be played and released or not? Is it a “divine gift” or a curse?
R: It’s a gift first. Music-makers are able to make their music available easily, and in ways they only dreamed of in the past, and music listeners can hear any music they want instantly, and easily. The curse is that the music industry can’t modify their economic structure quickly enough to keep up with the speed that technology develops...
Which is the guitarist who influenced rock music the most?
R: There have been many, but mostly Eddie Van Halen. When I heard the intro to the song “Mean Street” for the first time, it changed the way I thought about guitar.
Finally, we’ve come to the end Ron. Thx for talking to Grande Rock. Say anything you feel like saying before we close. Take care dude!
R: Thank you for your questions, and thank you to the readers for reading this! Hope to see you all soon!
R: Thank you very much, good to chat with you again! I’m happy you like the album, thanks!!
First of all, I’d like to ask how the band experienced the whole thing with Weiland’s loss. Did it cross your mind to call it a day at some point?
R: The way Weiland distanced himself from Art Of Anarchy was very disappointing, and unexpected. After the first album was released in June 2015, we started thinking about who our next singer could be...
How did you come up with Scott Stapp (Creed) as your new vocalist and in which way did he influence the band’s music style?
R: We had a short list of singers we thought would be good with the band, Scott Stapp was first on the list. We reached out, and in August two months after the album was released we were jamming with Scott Stapp. Scott always brings fantastic melodies, personal honest lyrics, it’s easy to relate to, and his voice is very recognizable. Scott is a true “team player” and a great guy to be in a band with; all the band members are, we work together as partners and all contribute fully, the way a band should, it’s great.
Listening to the album various times, I couldn’t help but think that Scott seems to have been with the band since the beginning. The music bond among you is so natural and normal on the whole. I do think that Scott “renews” the band’s sound in a way. What do you think?
R: Absolutely. We built something new, writing new songs, from scratch, building from the ground up. We all worked together, and the bond formed naturally, and over the past year-and-a-half it’s gotten stronger. I think that by us simply being ourselves, and doing this together, the music developed its own personality, a combination of all our personalities...
Which are the main differences and similarities between your debut and the new album?
R: To me the main difference, besides the obvious one of a new singer, is that the first album began as something personal for Jon & Vince Votta, they wrote the foundation of the songs on that album, and it evolved into a band. With the new album, everything began as a band from its beginning. The similarity is that Jon and Vince still express themselves the same way they did before on both albums, we all continued to be who we are.
What does the album title “The Madness” declare?
R: It’s a statement on Scott’s triumph over difficult personal challenges he had before joining the band. He speaks a lot about it in the lyrics throughout the album, and we all felt it was deserving of the album title. Not everybody survives what he went through – he did more than survive, he came out of it even stronger.
Do give us a hint about each track…
R: OK, here’s the first thoughts that come to mind...
“Echo of a Scream”: Modern, hi-energy, good guitar solos...
“1000 Degrees”: Foot-stomping anthem groove…
“No Surrender”: Dynamic from subdued verse to big chorus, dual harmony guitar melody solo.
“The Madness”: Our first single, also the first song we wrote together…
“Won’t Let You Down”: Melodic chorus, one of my favorites...
“Changed Man”: A real “rock ballad”...
“A Light in Me”: Another favorite...
“Somber”: A Somber reflective song, one of my favorite guitar solos...
“Dancing With the Devil”: Jon Votta does a cool solo at the end...
“Afterburn”: Lots of “ear candy” in the production, with old-school metal riffs, good guitar solos...
Did you take care of the album’s production again and where did the recordings take place? By the way, the production is superb in every part.
R: Thank you! Yes, I did the recording, mixing and mastering, we did it all at my studio...
You’re about to start a US tour in the next days. Do you intend to add more live shows in the US along the way? What about Europe?
R: We want to play everywhere we can, and hope to have this opportunity.
I do not know if you agree with the term “super-group” for AOA, but can you tell that AOA are here to stay no matter what? Did you talk it over with the other guys at some point?
R: No one knows what the future will be. The old saying is: “We make plans, and God laughs”. I’ve learned to take life one step at a time. Do we plan on breaking up tomorrow? Haha, no…
Which are your expectations from “The Madness” and what do you want to achieve with AOA in the years to come?
R: It’s simple, I want people to enjoy the music – I want them to feel energized by it, the way all get energized by music we love.
What about your personal plans for the future? Do you plan to release any solo album or not for the moment?
R: The focus is on Art Of Anarchy, but I always get the itch to do more Bumblefoot albums...
Time for our “weird questions”!!! How did you come up with the name Art OF Anarchy initially?
R: We all had ideas for names, Jon and Vince thought of Art Of Anarchy – “Art” because music is art, and “Anarchy” because everyone involved had un-governed freedom to write and perform what they wanted in the songs.
Has the internet changed the ways music should be played and released or not? Is it a “divine gift” or a curse?
R: It’s a gift first. Music-makers are able to make their music available easily, and in ways they only dreamed of in the past, and music listeners can hear any music they want instantly, and easily. The curse is that the music industry can’t modify their economic structure quickly enough to keep up with the speed that technology develops...
Which is the guitarist who influenced rock music the most?
R: There have been many, but mostly Eddie Van Halen. When I heard the intro to the song “Mean Street” for the first time, it changed the way I thought about guitar.
Finally, we’ve come to the end Ron. Thx for talking to Grande Rock. Say anything you feel like saying before we close. Take care dude!
R: Thank you for your questions, and thank you to the readers for reading this! Hope to see you all soon!